The Secretary-General of the ruling party RPF-Inkotanyi, François Ngarambe, has said that both Africans and Russians stand to benefit from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), whose implementation went into force at the beginning of this year.
He was speaking at an international inter-party conference that brought together heads of political organisations from different African countries, and the ruling party in Russia, the United Russia party.
Ngarambe, who represented President Paul Kagame, the chairman of RPF-Inkotanyi, said he strongly supports mutually beneficial cooperation, saying it was an important factor to building an equitable international order, and a brighter future for both Africans and Russians.
"The cooperation conference also comes at a very critical time when Africa and my country Rwanda are at a turning point in various ways and present unique opportunities of cooperation in trade and technology where Russia excels globally,” he said.
The meeting, which was held virtually, was attended by different heads of state in their capacities as party leaders, including President João Lourenço of Angola, Ethiopian Prime Minister Ahmed Abiy. Also present was Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki.
The Russian delegation was led by Dmitry Medvedev, the Chairperson of the Russian ruling party. He is also a former Russian President and later Prime Minister.
Subsidising intra-Africa trade
Ngarambe, who was flanked by senior cadres in RPF including commissioners representing different dockets, said that the AfCFTA creates new opportunities for African businesses and partners including Russia.
"By eliminating 97 per cent of all tariffs on intra-Africa traded products by 2035, AfCFTA further liberalises five priority services,” he said, listing these services as tourism and travel, business, transport, finance and communication services.
He added that Rwanda welcomes cooperation in fields such as IT, scientific research, global health governance and new sources of energy.
Already, Rwanda and Russia are in advanced stages of collaboration to rollout nuclear as a source of energy in Rwanda.
In October 2019, both countries signed an agreement that laid ground for the establishment, in Rwanda, of the Centre for Nuclear Science and Technology (CNST) with the latest technology of a 10 MW pool-type reactor.
The centre will feature six multi-purpose sections; Research Reactors and Lab Complex, Centre for Nuclear Medicine, Multipurpose Irradiation Centre, and Radiobiology Laboratory and Greenhouse.
Security component
Meanwhile, Ngarambe said that as both Russia and Africa advance the cooperation between respective business communities, and other institutions, it was important to create an enabling environment for such cooperation to take place.
"Peace and security presenting themselves as some imperatives for other developments to materialise, the RPF-Inkotanyi attach great importance to cooperation in the establishment of peace and security in Africa.”
In his message delivered to participants, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the first Russian-African summit held in 2019 gave an impetus to cultivating friendly ties between the countries.
He added that the inter-party dialogue, which is successfully developing, plays a vital role in facilitating cooperation.